The Spanish Ministry of Health has activated the action protocol in response to the outbreak of the Ebola virus disease, Bundibugyo variant, detected in Congo and Uganda, which led yesterday to the declaration of a public health emergency of international concern by the World Health Organization. The department emphasizes that the risk of transmission to the population in Spain is currently very low.
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At this time, the risk of transmission of the Ebola virus caused by the Bundibugyo virus to the Spanish population is considered very low. WHO recommendations for countries whose land borders do not adjoin countries with documented cases of the Bundibugyo virus disease include strengthening efforts in surveillance, prevention, and response, as well as enhancing capacities to implement control measures.
Health authorities recommend avoiding any travel to areas with active transmission, such as Ituri province and the city of Kinshasa in the Democratic Republic of the Congo, and Kampala in Uganda.
The group at highest risk is healthcare personnel, volunteers from non-governmental organizations with medical support, and frontline workers involved in the outbreak response on the ground.
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For those who are in or have recently been in the affected areas, the Ministry establishes a series of preventive measures: avoid contact with the sick and bodily fluids, do not participate in funeral ceremonies involving contact with the deceased, refrain from consuming wild animal meat, and wash hands frequently.
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Once back, any traveler coming from these areas will monitor their health status for the 21 days following their return, which is the maximum incubation period of the disease. If sudden fever, intense weakness, headache, vomiting, diarrhea, skin rashes, or bleeding appear, the Ministry urges immediate isolation and calling 112, without going to any healthcare center without prior notice.
The virus has caused 80 deaths in Congo
The Ministry of Health has reacted after the Director-General of the World Health Organization (WHO) declared yesterday a Public Health Emergency of International Concern (PHEIC) due to an outbreak of Ebola virus disease, specifically the Bundibugyo variant, active in the Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC) and Uganda.
As of May 16, 2026, eight confirmed cases, 246 suspected cases, and 80 suspected deaths have been reported in Ituri province, Congo. In Uganda, two cases have been confirmed—including one death—in Kampala, in two people traveling from Congo. In Kinshasa, the Congolese capital, an additional case has been detected in a person returning from Ituri. Among those affected are four healthcare workers who died in a clinical context compatible with viral hemorrhagic fever.
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